Success Story: Drugs and Children
When I first came to The Stephen Center in 1995 I was facing two drug charges and I had six children that I had lost custody of. I came from a very dysfunctional family who never cared about me. I medicated my life with drugs and alcohol. I had been in a couple of extremely abusive relationships. I was physically, mentally and verbally abused. I was a very wounded person physically and mentally. I tried to hide the fact that I was hurt from my family and men.
At this point in my life I didn’t know how to communicate well with others. I only knew about drugs and alcohol. I had no life skills. Then I met a counselor named Margaret Evans. She saw how I was struggling to comprehend things; she had me see a therapist, which I was badly in need of, once a week. Margaret Evans was the first person in my life that I felt cared about my well being. After spending 60 days in the HERO Program, Margaret told me she wanted me to go to Catholic Charities, complete their 30-day program and come back to The Stephen Center. The day I graduated was the day I was sentenced. I was sentenced to three to five years in the penitentiary. I called Margaret and told her that I couldn’t come back because I was going to prison. We were both crying on the phone, she had worked so hard to help me learn about life.
That was the first time in my life I began to learn that I didn’t need drugs or alcohol to live. I knew that someone had heard my cries for help and that someone cared.
After doing my prison time I ended back into trouble. I lost my children to the state for the second time. In May of 1998 I called Margaret while I was intoxicated and asked her if I could come into treatment. Margaret told me to go to detox over the weekend and come in the following Monday. This time in the program I met some more important people who helped me – Mike Johnson, Maggie Nocita and John Evans. I confided in Mike Johnson a lot. I would tell him that my brain was so damaged that I would never learn anything. He always told me that things would get better and that sometimes it takes longer. He encouraged me not to give up when I was trying to get my GED.
I was so impressed by the friendliness and all the support from the new people in my life; I was learning to use my tools for recovery. I learned how to live without drugs and alcohol, which was a miracle for me. For once in my life, I began to feel hopeful.
During one of the abusive relationships I was in, I had my lip split open. Margaret, Mike and Alison Dierks found a surgeon who agreed to do plastic surgery on my lip. I have so much gratitude for each person that was a part of helping me with that.
After graduating from the HERO program, I was sent to the Salvation Army for after care and housing. I was impressed because they were also very supportive.
In March 2003 I came back to The Stephen Center. My time was up at Salvation Army and I needed to find a place to live for my children and myself. I had a hard time finding a place because of my felony conviction. I was so stressed from being turned down from every place I applied that I contacted the one place that had always been there for me – The Stephen Center. I called Mike Johnson and he had me talk to Sharon More who is the Transitional Living Director at The Stephen Center. There was a house available big enough for my family and they welcomed me back with open arms.
Thanks to the programs and the people who cared about me, I received my GED and I am now a few months away from getting my associates degree in Chemical Dependency Counseling from Metropolitan Community College.
